Slugger
by Wolf Mandrake
Summary: Mulder makes trouble for himself, Scully, and Skinner when he insists he is having visions of the kidnapped son of a fellow agent and goes off on his own to rescue the boy. Set during season 3
1. Chapter 1

_I do not own The X Files or any of it's characters. This is just an idea for a standalone I had. I would say this takes places during the third season, maybe right after the Piper Maru case. Tentatively._

 _I am taking some liberties with events sanctioned and sponsored by the FBI. Not sure if they have a sponsored little league team but I needed a way to bring the families of the bureau together._

The X Files

 **Slugger**

J. Edgar Hoover Building

April 3rd

5:45 PM

Jack Leeds anxiously looked at his digital watch as his father pulled into the parking garage. They were on their way to Jack's baseball game but Gerald Leeds had gotten a call on his cell phone requesting his presence at work. Jack turned to his father as they got out of the car.

"Dad, warm ups start at 6:30," reminded Jack.

"I know. This won't take long. I promise. Just need to sign my name on a few forms for a case I'm working on," replied Gerald, leading the way to the elevator. "Plus I'm sure people will be glad to see Slugger himself here."

Jack smiled a little as they got on the elevator. The FBI sponsored little league team had been conceived a few years earlier as a way for agents and their families to interact and work with each other. Their kids could socialize and have fun playing. But the past two seasons had seen the team become legitimate threats in their league. A handful of players were carrying the team. Jack was one of them. He was quick on his feet while playing second base but more importantly was hitting home runs rather consistently that year. The result of hours of practice with his sister at the ballpark down from his house. Some kids had overheard her call him Slugger and now the nickname had spread to his father's co-workers. Jack didn't mind it. As far as nicknames were concerned, it was a pretty good one.

Jack followed his father to the office of assistant director Walter Skinner. The door was open and Skinner was waiting for Gerald with another agent. Skinner stood up from his chair and extended his hand to Gerald.

"Thank you for coming in, Agent Leeds. I promise this won't take long," exclaimed Skinner.

"Not a problem, sir. This is my son Jack. Jack, this is assistant director Skinner," said Gerald.

Jack held his own hand out and Skinner took it with a firm grip.

"Of course. Slugger himself," replied Skinner, with a laugh.

He turned away from the Leeds and motioned towards the other agent in his office.

"Agent Leeds, I'm not sure if you know Agent Scully. I asked her to perform the autopsy on the most recent victim," introduced Skinner.

Special agent Dana Scully stood up from her chair and shook Gerald and Jack's hands.

"Thank you for your help, Agent Scully," exclaimed Gerald.

"It was my pleasure. I just need to go over a few things with you and get your signature on the autopsy report," replied Scully.

Gerald nodded and turned to Jack, getting his wallet out of his pocket at the same time.

"Jack, why don't you go get some things to eat at the vending machine? I won't be long," exclaimed Gerald.

"The vending machines on this floor are all broken. Closest ones are down in the basement," replied Skinner.

Jack took the elevator down to the basement as his father met with the assistant director and the redheaded agent. He found the vending machines alright and got himself some chips and a granola bar. He was taking them back to the elevator to go wait outside Skinner's office when he noticed an open door. His father had always told him not to disturb any agents working in their offices. But Jack didn't think an agent worked down here. Curiosity got the best of him and he went to look inside. The office as rather spacious. It was a little cluttered with a desk and random assortments of things on shelves. A poster of a UFO with the words I Want to Believe was on the wall. Jack stepped into the office and looked around as he ate his chips. The office was very strange. Jack went over to the desk and read the name plate. Fox Mulder. Jack raised an eyebrow. He felt like he had heard that name before. Jack turned around when he felt someone standing in the doorway. He found a man holding an open folder with a gun on his hip standing in the doorway. The man raised an eyebrow.

"You wouldn't be the possession case I'm supposed to meet this week?" asked the man.

"Um, no. I'm very sorry, sir. I didn't mean to intrude in your office. I just stopped at the vending machine," replied Jack.

"That's ok. Make yourself at home. I'm Fox Mulder. And you are Jack "Slugger" Leeds," exclaimed the man.

Jack nodded. Mulder walked in as he closed the folder he was reading.

"You follow the baseball team?" asked Jack.

"Well I read about you in the company newsletter. You're famous around here," replied Mulder.

"I guess. I just hit the ball and hope for the best."

"And you hit it very well. What is it right now? Seven home runs in ten games? That's pretty damn good."

"Thank you. Have you been to a game?"

"Unfortunately no. My work down here keeps me pretty busy."

Jack looked around the room again.

"What exactly is down here?"

"The X Files," replied Mulder.

"The what?" asked Jack.

The X Files. The cases that are strange and unusual," replied Mulder.

"Oh ok. Yeah I think I've heard my dad mention it a few times. That's why your name sounded familiar."

"Yeah you probably heard people call me "Spooky" Mulder."

Jack shrugged.

"We all have our nicknames," added Mulder.

"So you investigate UFOs?"

"Among other things yes. Basically you can say I chase the things that go bump in the night."

Mulder's desk phone rang and he held up his finger and picked it up.

"Mulder."

While Mulder took his phone call, Jack studied some of the photos put up on the wall by Mulder. Strange drawings, photos, notes. The office was messy but there seemed to be a method to the madness.

"Ok. I'll bring him up. No it's fine. Yeah."

Mulder hung up as Jack turned around to look at him.

"They finished upstairs. My partner thought maybe we had bumped into each other down here. I need to go see Skinner anyway," explained Mulder, leading the way out of his office.

"Don't you lock the door?" asked Jack, as Mulder left the door open.

"No need. The people who would want to get in there, a locked door wouldn't stop them," replied Mulder.

They rode the elevator back up and Gerald Leeds was waiting right outside of the elevator doors. He and Mulder shared a brief look.

"Agent Mulder," greeted Gerald.

"Agent Leeds," replied Mulder.

"Jack, you weren't bothering Agent Mulder were you?" asked Gerald.

"Oh not at all. In fact it was nice to have some company down there," replied Mulder.

"Very well. Alright, we've got a game to go to. Thank you for bringing him back up, Agent Mulder," exclaimed Gerald.

"Don't mention it. Good luck tonight," replied Mulder.

"Thanks," said Jack, as Gerald guided him towards the exit.

Mulder watched them walk off for a few seconds and then went to Skinner's office, where Scully was signing off on the autopsy she had performed for Gerald.

"Make this quick, Agent Mulder. I don't want to miss the game," exclaimed Skinner.

"Since when are you a baseball fan, sir?" asked Mulder.

"I have to show my face at the games every now and then. Plus with them doing so well, I want to show my support," replied Skinner. "So what can I do for you?"

"I need you to sign this travel requisition. We're going to Michigan," replied Mulder, handing Skinner a piece of paper.

"What's in Michigan?" asked Skinner.

"Two nights ago an entire neighborhood was woken up by flashing lights that also shook the houses," replied Mulder.

Skinner nodded and quickly signed his name on the travel requisition. Mulder turned to Scully.

"We leave tomorrow morning at eight AM, Scully," explained Mulder.

Alexandria, Virginia

3:15 AM

Mulder woke with a start, grabbing his gun off the coffee table and holding it out in front of him. He had sworn someone was in his apartment. But the place was dark and quiet. Mulder sighed and put his gun down, leaning back on the couch and yawning with his eyes closed. When he opened them back up, he sat straight up. Jack Leeds was standing in the middle of his apartment, yelling something at Mulder. But the boy made no sound. By reading his lips though Mulder could swear he was saying "help me." Mulder turned around to turn on the light but when he turned back around Jack was gone. Mulder wasn't sure what that had been. A dream? A vision? But a vision of what? He was pondering his options when his phone rang. Mulder went over and answered it.

"Mulder."

"Mulder, it's me."

"Scully, what are you doing up?"

"I was going to ask the same of you. Mulder, we won't be going to Michigan. I just got called in by Skinner. He basically said all hands on deck"

"What's going on?"

"Gerald Leeds called Bethesda PD forty-five minutes ago. His son was taken from his bedroom."

 _Oh yes, that glorious theme song is playing right now. Please review and let me know what you think. Thank you._


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks to those who read the first part. I was hoping for one or two more reviews but I saw some people followed the story and added it to favorites so I'll release a second part. Bear with some smaller chapters as I get the story together in my head. Please try to review and let me know what you think.

A companion episode for this story could be a deeply underrated episode from season 3, Oubliette. Season 3 I think is the best of the series and some true gems get lost in the shuffle. Oubliette is one of them. Ok intro over.

J. Edgar Hoover Building

5:36 AM

Mulder stepped off the elevator and found Scully walking towards him. She was dressed for work but Mulder had just thrown on a shirt, jeans, and a jacket.

"Scully. So what happened?" asked Mulder.

"Look, Mulder, I don't think you're going to get asked onto this task force. Skinner brought your name up but the agent in charge shot it down pretty quickly,"

"Whose in charge?"

"Agent Crowder. Not your biggest fan. To be honest not mine either. But he has a good track record with kidnappings."

"Then he's the right man for the job, sure. Listen, Scully, I need to talk to you. In private. Preferably down in my office."

"I can't step away right now, Mulder. Skinner wants me on this."

"Agent Mulder," exclaimed special agent Glenn Crowder, as he came out of the meeting room being used to create the situation room for the task force.

"Agent Crowder," greeted Mulder.

"I don't remember asking for you," replied Crowder.

"I heard about what happened. Came down to offer my help. I've profiled a few kidnappings in my time," explained Mulder.

Crowder obviously wanted to say no but he also couldn't deny that before his work on the X Files Mulder had been one of the top profilers in the bureau. So he just nodded.

"Alright, you want to write up a profile, that's fine by me. But you listen to me, Mulder. I know about the absurdity you call your work on the X-Files. So you write up a profile and stay out of my way and my team's way," warned Crowder.

"I guess I'll have to live with that," replied Mulder.

Crowder nodded.

"Agent Scully will fill you in,. You're welcome to look at what we have for now," said Crowder.

He went back into the war room, as it was being called, leaving Mulder and Scully in the hallway.

"So what do they have? If anything?" asked Mulder.

"Gerald Leeds woke up to get a glass of water. He went downstairs and found the alarm system had been disabled. He went upstairs to check on his children. He found Jack gone and his window open. There was a ladder leading against the house. The garage door was open as well," explained Scully.

"Obviously where the kidnapper got the ladder. So this guy either knows the alarm code or knows how to hack them?" asked Mulder.

"Those are the theories that Crowder is going with. SO what did you want to tell me?"

"Why don't we go down to my office?"

Scully sighed but accompanied Mulder down to his office. He turned on his lights and then went over and started looking through the cabinets with the X files.

"Don't tell me this reminds you of an X file?" asked Scully.

"Not the actual kidnapping now. Scully, do you know if the Leeds family is religious?" asked Mulder.

"Actually they are. Jack Leeds and his sister go to private Catholic schools in Bethesda," replied Scully. "I'm afraid to ask why that's relevant."

"I saw him in my apartment."

"Who?"

"Jack Leeds."

"Oh, Jesus, Mulder."

"On May 5th 1984 a nine-year-old boy named Henry McNeil went missing in Wheeling, West Virginia. Left his house to walk to the bus, never made it. His father was away on a business trip. In San Francisco. He woke up at around the same time as his son was being kidnapped. Swore he saw him in his hotel room. The same thing happened to me tonight. Jack Leeds was in my apartment."

"Do not tell that to Crowder or Agent Leeds and his family. Mulder, even if I believed this, why wouldn't Jack Leeds appear to his father and not to you?"

"I don't know. Not yet anyway."

"And why is it important that he's religious?"

"Prayer is supposed to be a powerful tool in religious all over the world. In some religions it's almost like a chant. Certain Native American tribes for one use intense chanting to leave their bodies or possibly even travel to other planes of existence. So I think Jack Leeds in some way prayed himself out of his body and came to me asking for help."

"Mulder, I, don't even know how to respond to that. Do not turn this into an X file or Crowder will try to ruin you. Skinner can only protect you so much."

"I'm not turning this into anything. I'm going to write up a profile but also investigate this and try to save Jack Leeds. You with me, Scully?"

Scully found herself at a crossroads. This case was going to become a powder keg real fast. Right now everyone was cooperating because it was early on. A colleague was in need and people were agreeable. But that would change real fast. Fingers would start to be pointed. Crowder had a short temper. Scully had seen that when she worked on a task force with him early on in her career. He didn't like it when a case went nowhere. Mulder's access to this case would not last long. Scully knew it. A part of her wanted to talk him into just writing up the profile and keeping his distance. But at the same time she knew that if there was the possibility of a supernatural element to this case, no one was better suited to help then Mulder.

"Alright, Mulder. I'm with you. But we tread lightly and keep our theories to ourselves for right now,"

There was a knock on the door and Mulder and Scully looked over to see Skinner standing in the doorway with a file in his hand.

"Sir, please come in. What brings you to my humble abode down here?" asked Mulder.

"Agent Crowder put together a summary for you. I volunteered to bring it down to you," replied Skinner.

"Crowder has you running errands for him?" asked Mulder.

Skinner gave Mulder a dirty look as he put the file down on his desk.

"I was coming down here anyway to talk to you s soon as Crowder told me you were involved. Now you better be completely honest with me, Mulder. WHat's your angle here?" asked Skinner.

"I don't have an angle, sir," answered Mulder. "I want to help out."

Skinner saw the X file on Mulder's desk and went over and picked it up, opening it to read it. He shook his head.

"The Henry McNeil case. Crowder and I were on the task force. Why is this an X file?" asked Skinner.

Mulder shared a look with Scully who shrugged. He decided to trust Skinner and told him about the McNeil case and about Jack Leeds appearing in his apartment. Skinner groaned.

"Damnit, Mulder. Really? You can't leave this alone?" asked Skinner.

"I'm just typing up a profile, sir. Nothing else," promised Mulder.

Skinner sighed and looked back and forth between Mulder and Scully. He finally nodded.

"You see your head down and get that profile to Crowder as soon as possible. You do not mention anything X file related. Do I make myself clear, Mulder?" asked Skinner.

"Crystal, sir."


End file.
